All-purpose pad system

ABSTRACT

A body section in a generally rectilinear configuration has upper and lower surfaces, upper and lower peripheries, and first and second side peripheries. A head section in a generally rectilinear configuration has upper and lower surfaces, upper and lower peripheries, and first and second side peripheries, and a face aperture. A coupling assembly includes a fixed hook and loop fastener attached to the lower periphery and portions of the first and second side peripheries of the head section. The coupling assembly also includes a movable hook and loop fastener attached to the upper periphery spaced from portions of the first and second side peripheries of the body section. The system is adapted to provide supine and prone patient positioning.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an all-purpose pad system adapted toprovide supine and prone patient positioning and more particularlypertains to receiving and supporting a patient in need of treatment, thereceiving and supporting being done in a safe, comfortable, convenientand economical manner.

2. Description of the Prior Art

The use of pads of known designs and configurations is known in theprior art. More specifically, pads of known designs and configurationspreviously devised and utilized for the purpose of supporting a patientneeding treatment are known to consist basically of familiar, expected,and obvious structural configurations, notwithstanding the myriad ofdesigns encompassed by the crowded prior art which has been developedfor the fulfillment of countless objectives and requirements.

While these devices fulfill their respective, particular objectives andrequirements, the prior art does not describe an all-purpose pad systemthat allows receiving and supporting a patient in need of treatment, thereceiving and supporting being done in a safe, comfortable, convenient,and economical manner.

In this respect, the all-purpose pad system according to the presentinvention substantially departs from the conventional concepts anddesigns of the prior art, and in doing so provides an apparatusprimarily developed for the purpose of receiving and supporting apatient in need of treatment in a safe, comfortable, convenient, andeconomical manner.

Therefore, it can be appreciated that there exists a continuing need fora new and improved all-purpose pad system which can be used forreceiving and supporting a patient in need of treatment in a safe,comfortable, convenient, and economical manner. In this regard, thepresent invention substantially fulfills this need.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the disadvantages inherent in the known types of pads ofknown designs and configurations now present in the prior art, thepresent invention provides an improved all-purpose pad system. As such,the general purpose of the present invention, which will be describedsubsequently in greater detail, is to provide a new and improvedall-purpose pad system and method which has all the advantages of theprior art and none of the disadvantages.

In its broad context, the present invention essentially comprises a bodysection, a head section and a coupling assembly. The body section is ina geometric configuration. The body section has upper and lowersurfaces. The body section has upper and lower peripheries. The bodysection has first and second side peripheries.

The head section is in a geometric configuration. The head section hasupper and lower surfaces, upper and lower peripheries, and first andsecond side peripheries. A face aperture is provided in the headsection.

The coupling assembly includes a fixed hook and loop fastener. The fixedhook and loop fastener is attached to the lower periphery and portionsof the first and second side peripheries of the head section. Thecoupling assembly also includes a movable hook and loop fastener. Themovable hook and loop fastener is attached to the upper periphery. Themovable hook and loop fastener is spaced from portions of the first andsecond side peripheries of the body section.

Such components are individually configured and correlated with respectto each other so as to attain the desired objective.

There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more importantfeatures of the invention in order that the detailed description thereofthat follows may be better understood and in order that the presentcontribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of course,additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafterand which will form the subject matter of the claims attached.

In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of theinvention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is notlimited in its application to the details of construction and to thearrangements of the components set forth in the following description orillustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of otherembodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways.Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminologyemployed herein are for the purpose of descriptions and should not beregarded as limiting.

As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception,upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basisfor the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carryingout the several purposes of the present invention. It is important,therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalentconstructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope ofthe present invention.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new andimproved all-purpose pad system which has all of the advantages of theprior art pads of known designs and configurations and none of thedisadvantages.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a new andimproved all-purpose pad system which may be easily and efficientlymanufactured and marketed.

It is further object of the present invention to provide a new andimproved all-purpose pad system which is of durable and reliableconstructions.

An even further object of the present invention is to provide a new andimproved all-purpose pad system which is susceptible of a low cost ofmanufacture with regard to both materials and labor, and whichaccordingly is then susceptible of low prices of sale, thereby makingsuch all-purpose pad system economically available.

Lastly, it is an object of the present invention is to provide anall-purpose pad system for receiving and supporting a patient in need oftreatment. The receiving and supporting are done in a safe, comfortable,convenient, and economical manner.

These together with other objects of the invention, along with thevarious features of novelty which characterize the invention, arepointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming apart of this disclosure.

For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantagesand the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be hadto the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there isillustrated preferred embodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be better understood and objects other than those setforth above will become apparent when consideration is given to thefollowing detailed description thereof. Such description makes referenceto the annexed drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of an all-purpose pad systemconstructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged side elevational view of the interface between thehead section and the body section.

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of a portion of the head section taken alongline 4-4 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view of a portion of the head section takenalong line 5-5 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a side elevational view of the body section viewed in FIGS.1-4.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of the body section taken along line 7-7 of FIG.6.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of an all-purpose pad system constructed inaccordance with the principles of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an exploded side elevational view of the all-purpose padsystem taken along lie 7-7 of FIG. 8.

The same reference numerals refer to the same parts throughout thevarious Figures.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to FIG. 1 thereof,the preferred embodiment of the new and improved all-purpose pad systemembodying the principles and concepts of the present invention andgenerally designated by the reference numeral 10 will be described.

The present invention, the all-purpose pad system 10 is comprised of aplurality of components. Such components are individually configured andcorrelated with respect to each other so as to attain the desiredobjective. In their broadest context such include a body section, a headsection, a coupling assembly, and a face aperture in the head section.

In the preferred embodiment of the all-purpose pad system, designated byreference numeral 10, first provided a body section 14. The body sectionis in a generally rectilinear configuration. The body section has aplanar upper surface 16. The body section has a parallel planar lowersurface 18. The upper and lower surfaces are separated by a thickness of4 inches plus or minus 10 percent. The body section has an upperperiphery 20. The body section has a parallel lower periphery 22. Theupper and lower peripheries are separated by a height of 40 inches plusor minus 10 percent. The body section has a first side periphery 24. Thebody section has a parallel second side periphery 26. The sideperipheries are separated by a width of 20 inches plus or minus 10percent. The body section is fabricated of an interior 28 of a soft,resilient polyurethane foam and an exterior of a soft flexible vinyl.

A head section 32 is provided. The head section is in a generallyrectilinear configuration. The head section has a planar upper surface34. The head section has a parallel planar lower surface 36. The upperand lower surfaces are separated by a thickness of 4 inches plus orminus 10 percent. The head section has an upper periphery 38. The headsection has a parallel lower periphery 40. The upper and lowerperipheries are separated by a height of 30 inches plus or minus 10percent. The head section has a first side periphery 42. The headsection has a parallel second side periphery 44. The side peripheriesare separated by a width of 20 inches plus or minus 10 percent. The headsection is fabricated of an interior 46 of a soft, resilient elastomericfoam and an exterior of a soft flexible vinyl.

A coupling assembly 50 is provided. The coupling assembly includes afixed hook and loop fastener 52. The fixed hook and loop fastener isattached to the lower periphery of the head section. The fixed hook andloop fastener is further attached to portions of the first and secondside peripheries. The fixed hook and loop fastener has a length of 32inches plus or minus 10 percent and a width of 2 inches plus or minus 10percent. The coupling assembly also includes a movable hook and loopfastener 54. The movable hook and loop fastener is attached to the upperperiphery of the body section. The movable hook and loop fastener isspaced from portions of the first and second side peripheries. Themovable hook and loop fastener has a length of 32 inches plus or minus10 percent and a width of 2 inches plus or minus 10 percent. The movablehook and loop fastener has a central region 56. The central region isadapted to removably couple with the fixed hook and loop fastener on thelower periphery of the head section. The movable hook and loop fastenerhas end regions 58. The end regions are adapted to removably couple withthe fixed hook and loop fastener on the first and second sideperipheries of the head section.

Provided next is a face aperture 62 in the head section. The faceaperture is in an oval configuration with a major axis of 5 inches plusor minus 10 percent and a minor axis of 4 inches plus or minus 10percent. The face aperture is centrally positioned between the sidesurfaces closer to the upper surface than to the lower surfaces. Theface aperture may take any shape including oval, circular, rectangular,or the like.

Air lines 66, 68 are provided. The air lines extend from each side edgeto the face aperture. A feed line 70 is also provided connecting apreselected one of the feed lines to a source of oxygen. In this manneroxygen is supplied to a user of the system.

Also provided is a primary projection 74. The primary projection is in agenerally rectilinear configuration. The primary projection is attachedto the upper surface of the head section. The primary projection islocated between the aperture and the lower surface of the head section.The primary projection has a width of 15 inches plus or minus 10percent, a height of 15 inches plus or minus 10 percent, and a thicknessof 1.5 inches plus or minus 10 percent. The primary projection isfabricated of a soft, resilient polyurethane foam and an exterior of asoft flexible vinyl.

Further provided is a secondary projection 78. The secondary projectionis in a semi-cylindrical configuration. The semi-cylindricalconfiguration is adapted to be removably coupled to the primaryprojection. The secondary projection has a width of 15 inches plus orminus 10 percent, a height of 15 inches plus or minus 10 percent, and acentral height of 4.5 inches plus or minus 10 percent. Hook and loopfasteners 80 are provided. The hook and loop fasteners removably coupleto the secondary projection to the primary projection. The secondaryprojection is fabricated of an air impervious bladder with an exteriorof a soft flexible vinyl. A squeeze ball 82 is provided. The squeezeball has a tube 84. The tube is coupleable to the secondary projection.In this manner the secondary projection is inflated.

Provided last are two wrist restraints 88. Each wrist restraint has acentral extent 90. Each wrist restraint has opposed free ends 92. Hookand loop fasteners 94 are provided at the free ends to facilitateconstraining the wrists of a patient. The central extents of therestraints are attached to the side surfaces of the body sectionadjacent to the upper surface.

As to the manner of usage and operation of the present invention, thesame should be apparent from the above description. Accordingly, nofurther discussion relating to the manner of usage and operation will beprovided.

With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized thatthe optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, toinclude variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and mannerof operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obviousto one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to thoseillustrated in the drawings and described in the specification areintended to be encompassed by the present invention.

Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of theprinciples of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications andchanges will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is notdesired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operationshown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications andequivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of theinvention.

What is claimed as being new and desired to be protected by LettersPatent of the United States is as follows:
 1. An all-purpose pad systemcomprising: a body section in a geometric configuration having upper andlower surfaces, upper and lower peripheries, and first and second sideperipheries; a head section in a geometric configuration having upperand lower surfaces, upper and lower peripheries, and first and secondside peripheries; a coupling assembly including a fixed hook and loopfastener attached to the lower periphery and portions of the first andsecond side peripheries of the head section, the coupling assembly alsoincluding a movable hook and loop fastener attached to the upperperiphery spaced from portions of the first and second side peripheriesof the body section; and a face aperture in the head section.
 2. Thesystem as set forth in claim 1 and further including: air linesextending from each side edge to the face aperture, a feed lineconnecting a preselected one of the feed lines to a source of oxygen forsupplying oxygen to a user of the system.
 3. The system as set forth inclaim 1 and further including: a primary projection in a generallyrectilinear configuration attached to the upper surface of the headsection, the primary projection being located between the aperture andthe lower surface of the head section, the primary projection having awidth and a height and a thickness, the primary projection beingfabricated of a soft, resilient polyurethane foam with an exterior of asoft flexible vinyl.
 4. The system as set forth in claim 3 and furtherincluding: a secondary projection in a semi-cylindrical configurationadapted to be removably coupled to the primary projection, the secondaryprojection having a width and a height and a central height, hook andloop fasteners removably coupling the secondary projection to theprimary projection, the secondary projection being fabricated of an airimpervious bladder with an exterior of a soft flexible vinyl a squeezeball with a tube for inflating the secondary projection.
 5. The systemas set forth in claim 1 and further including: two wrist restrains, eachwrist restraint having a central extent and opposed free ends, hook andloop fasteners at the free ends to facilitate the constraining wrists ofa patient, the central extents of the restraints being attached to theside surfaces of the body section adjacent to the upper surface.
 6. Anall-purpose pad system (10) for receiving and supporting a patient inneed of treatment, the system adapted to provide supine and pronepatient positioning, the receiving and supporting being done in a safe,comfortable, convenient and economical manner, the system comprising, incombination: a body section (14) in a generally rectilinearconfiguration having a planar upper surface (16) and a parallel planarlower surface (18) separated by a thickness of 4 inches plus or minus 10percent, the body section having an upper periphery (20) and a parallellower periphery (22) separated by a height of 40 inches plus or minus 10percent, the body section having a first side periphery (24) and aparallel second side periphery (26) separated by a width of 20 inchesplus or minus 10 percent, the body section being fabricate of aninterior (28) of a soft, resilient polyurethane foam, the body sectionhaving an exterior of a soft flexible vinyl; a head section (32) in agenerally rectilinear configuration having a planar upper surface (34)and a parallel planar lower surface (36) separated by a thickness of 4inches plus or minus 10 percent, the head section having an upperperiphery (38) and a parallel lower periphery (40) separated by a heightof 30 inches plus or minus 10 percent, the head section having a firstside periphery (42) and a parallel second side periphery (44) separatedby a width of 20 inches plus or minus 10 percent, the head section beingfabricated of an interior (46) of a soft, resilient elastomeric foam,the body section having an exterior of a soft flexible vinyl; a couplingassembly (50) including a fixed hook and loop fastener (52) attached tothe lower periphery of the head section and attached to portions of thefirst and second side peripheries, the fixed hook and loop fastenerhaving a length of 32 inches plus or minus 10 percent and a width of 2inches plus or minus 10 percent, the coupling assembly (50) alsoincluding of a movable hook and loop fastener (54) attached to the upperperiphery of the body section and spaced from portions of the first andsecond side peripheries, the movable hook and loop fastener having alength of 32 inches plus or minus 10 percent and a width of 2 inchesplus or minus 10 percent, the movable hook and loop fastener having acentral region (56) adapted to removable couple with the fixed hook andloop fastener on the lower periphery of the head section, the movablehook and loop fastener having end regions (58) adapted to removablecouple with the fixed hook and loop fastener on the first and secondside peripheries of the head section; a face aperture (62) in the headsection, the face aperture having an oval configuration with a majoraxis of 5 inches plus or minus 10 percent and a minor axis of 4 inchesplus or minus 10 percent, the face aperture being central positionedbetween the side surfaces closer to the upper surface than to the lowersurfaces; air lines (66)(68) extending from each side edge to the faceaperture, a feed line (70) connecting a preselected one of the feedlines to a source of oxygen for supplying oxygen to a user of thesystem; a primary projection (74) in a generally rectilinearconfiguration attached to the upper surface of the head section, theprimary projection being located between the aperture and the lowersurface of the head section, the primary projection having a width of 15inches plus or minus 10 percent and a height of 15 inches plus or minus10 percent and a thickness of 1.5 inches plus or minus 10 percent, theprimary projection being fabricated of a soft, resilient polyurethanefoam with an exterior of a soft flexible vinyl; a secondary projection(78) in a semi-cylindrical configuration adapted to be removably coupledto the primary projection, the secondary projection having a width of 15inches plus or minus 10 percent and a height of 15 inches plus or minus10 percent and a central height of 4.5 inches plus or minus 10 percent,hook and loop fasteners (80) removably coupling the secondary projectionto the primary projection, the secondary projection being fabricated ofan air impervious bladder with an exterior of a soft flexible vinyl, asqueeze ball (82) with a tube (84) coupleable to the secondaryprojection for inflating the secondary projection; and two wristrestraints (88), each wrist restraint having a central extent (90) andopposed free ends (92), hook and loop fasteners (94) at the free ends tofacilitate the constraining wrists of a patient, the central extents ofthe restraints being attached to the side surfaces of the body sectionadjacent to the upper surface.